Alex Whitman, World Savior
by whimsycality
Summary: When Tess warps Alex to decode the book, it creates an unexpected side effect that she can't control, leading to a bond, emotions, and a future she didn't see coming until it was too late to resist, until she didn't want to resist. Alex/Tess pairing.


**Title:** Alex Whitman, World Savior

**Spoilers: **All of Roswell is up for grabs, AU as of Season Two, canon up to Max in the City.

**Disclaimer: **I own absolutely nothing, all characters and original Roswell settings belong to other very lucky people as do the lyrics to all songs used.

**Pairings/Couples/Category:** UC/AU, Alex/Tess

**Rating:** Mature

**Warnings:** Angst, Occasional use of foul language, an unashamedly fluffy ending, oh, and it _is_ a bonding story :-D

**Summary:** When Tess warps Alex to decode the book, it creates an unexpected side effect that she can't control, leading to a bond, emotions, and a future she didn't see coming until it was too late to resist, until she didn't want to resist.

**A/N: **Written for Lisa for the Secret Santa Fix Exchange on Polar Attraction dot net

* * *

_I think you can do much better than me_

_After all the lies that I made you believe_

_Guilt kicks in and I start to see_

Tess watched as his intelligent blue eyes clouded over, a fog seeping into his mind, twisting and suggesting and making him hers. It took more energy than she had expected, than Nasedo had prepared her for, and something inside the two of them clicked when she added the finishing touches – a first level bond, just like the ones that siblings, paired soldiers, or a betrothed couple would establish for sharing thoughts and emotions on a deeper level than was allowed for by the mere possession of mental communication. She almost jerked out of Alex's mind in shock, and had to catch herself before she damaged both of their psyches, mouth gaping as she stared at the lanky boy in disbelief. That was _not_ supposed to happen.

After a moment, her teeth clicked shut and her stomach twisted with dread as she realized that Nasedo's death had not been the last, nor, potentially, the worst snag in the plan he had devised. That sort of bond _could_ be broken without the death of one of the members, unlike the second level one established between married couples or the royal court and their guards, but not without cost to both parties, and while it was in place…the blonde sighed, rubbing her forehead as she felt the echo of Alex's headache on top of her own; everything had just gotten much more complicated.

With the bond, it would be easier to control him, even when he was miles away in Las Cruces, but it would also increase his chances of breaking out of it if she didn't pay close enough attention. Not to mention causing her to be subjected to his emotions and the occasional physical feeling whenever she wasn't actively blocking him, upping her risk of being discovered if someone noticed her reacting to invisible stimuli.

"Fuck," she muttered under her breath as the full implications sank in, and then flushed, waiting for a comment on her unusual and out of character use of foul language, before realizing with a bitterly amused twist of her lips that Alex wouldn't say anything, couldn't say anything, unless she told him to. One puppet as ordered, mostly, and she felt a sudden crushing sense of responsibility, terror, and inevitability as she took in his blank and wooden face. He deserved better than this, better than being an unwitting accomplice in betraying those he cared for, just as he'd deserved better than her disdain and Isabel's callous disregard. But it was too late; it had been too late before either of them were born, and willing or not, he was her puppet, and she was his master.

_'What the hell have you done to me Tess?' _A voice, his voice, echoed in her mind, shattering her resigned depression, and she couldn't stop herself that time from actually physically jerking back, almost falling to the floor in stunned bemusement. Alex hadn't moved, not so much as a flutter of his eyelashes, and she swallowed, hard. She was just imagining things, she told herself firmly, the faint remnants of her human guilty conscience playing tricks on her. _'I am not your imagination, Tess,' _the voice retorted, sharp as a razor. _'And I don't think you have a conscience.'_

A pang of guilt and hurt shot through her, quickly followed by the deep and icy anger that had always been her shield, and she slammed up her mental barriers, smirking in hollow triumph as she felt him push against them once, twice, three times, before giving up. Bond or no bond, guilt or no guilt, she was not going to be stuck with him in her head, conscience be damned.

_How can I decide what's right?_

_When you're clouding up my mind_

_I can't win your losing fight all the time_

_Nor could I ever own what's mine_

Alex clawed furiously against the wall separating him from his body, slamming his will against it again and again without finding the faintest sense of weakness. He would have cried if he could, as unmanly as it was, but a disembodied consciousness couldn't cry, couldn't do anything but rage silently into the void as his life was ripped from his control and turned into a tool, a weapon, against his friends. He could feel an invisible tether holding him in place, keeping him from vanishing in truth, but knowing that he couldn't die that easily was no comfort in the face of his helplessness.

Gritting his mental teeth against the inexorable feeling of despair at his current condition, which he didn't even know the length of in this timeless emptiness, he turned his attention to the other invisible tether weighing on his consciousness, a more tenuous connection, but one that flared with power not evident in the cord tying him to his body. _She_ was on the other end, brilliant with energy and life, and he grimly 'stared' at the barrier Tess had erected to keep him out – a wall significantly weaker than the one keeping him trapped. He'd tried to break it before, and failed, but she'd been concentrating on him then, and he hadn't had time to get used to how it felt to be nothing more than a brain, no matter how often that particular epithet had been applied to him since grade school.

A faintly bitter wave of ironic amusement swept through him, but he shook it off and focused on the traitorous blonde hybrid and her shield, closing the 'distance' between them with a single thought and concentrating his will and energy into a single lancing point, instead of a battering ram. A shock tingled through his awareness and then he was through, 'seeing' the orderly thoughts and not so orderly emotions swirling around her head. She was as open to him as he had been to her and a spark of triumph lit inside him. Of course, she wasn't nearly so helpless, a fact that burned him with unfamiliar acidic rage as he wished just for a moment that he could wield the kind of power she did, could make the blue-eyed girl feel as helpless as he felt.

Whatever bond existed between them picked up on his thoughts, and suddenly he was in her memories, suddenly knew that she _had_ been as helpless as he was once, and that just as she controlled him, Nasedo had controlled her, albeit by subtler methods. Alex could taste her younger self's fear, could see her developing and refining the same rage he now felt, and his vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, that damnable streak of sensitivity and understanding that had caused him more trouble in his life than anything else, rearing its head and transmuting the blonde from an enemy, his jailor, to one of his girls, just as in need of protection as Liz or Maria or Isabel. And just like them, Tess's biggest enemy was herself.

Before he could dig any further, the hybrid noticed him and forcibly ejected him from her mind with a stinging slap of power he didn't need a body to feel. He figuratively dusted himself off and focused on her mind once again. Tess was going to be deeply disappointed if she thought he was that easy to get rid of, and he knew he could find more chinks in her armor, both external, and internal.

_Shame pulses through my heart from the things I've done to you_

_It's hard to face but the fact remains that this is nothing new_

_I left you bound and tied with suicidal memories_

_Selfish beneath the skin but deep inside I'm not insane_

Tess grimaced and hid a shudder as she pushed Alex out of her mind for the third time that day, and the nth time in the past two weeks, ignoring the concerned glance Kyle shot her from across the living room. Each time the boy got through, it took her longer to notice him digging through her memories, and took more energy to force him out. She didn't think there was anything there that could help him escape her control – he didn't have the core of power her unique genetics gave her that was necessary to perform the mental maneuvers she was capable of, even if he learned their mechanics – but every time she caught him studying her innermost thoughts, radiating emotions she didn't understand and didn't want to feel, not from him, it weakened the tight reins she'd been holding onto her own emotions, and her guilt.

She couldn't even manage to summon up her usual defense of anger as he invaded her privacy; what right had she to complain? He was stealing her memories; she had stolen his life.

But that didn't mean she was going to _let_ him waltz willy-nilly through her mind; there were things there that she didn't want anyone to see, not even herself. Tess had learned long ago to repress her human side, to ignore all emotions except those that were of use, which until Roswell had been limited to the icy core of anger that kept her safe from the worst of her own feelings, and the worst of Nasedo's. Tying herself to a human, however necessary, was weakening those protective barriers, and she hated it.

A human psychologist probably would have diagnosed her with bi-polar disorder; she'd always kept her outer self separate from her inner self, displaying whatever front was necessary for Nasedo, for the other hybrids, for the ignorant humans, and the ones in the know, while her true personality remained a secret. But now, even that inner core was fragmented – one part focused on maintaining the hold on Alex's body, on directing him in his required actions, a second part focused with her other duties, and the third part, the one place she was free to think and feel whatever she wished, dealing with internal attacks from Alex's mind. Her inner sanctuary had never been invaded before, not even Nasedo had the power to break through her mental shields, not the ones she kept hidden beneath her surface thoughts; no one had, not until she'd ignorantly and foolishly created a door.

In point of fact, she was beginning to feel a bit insane as she guarded against a voice in her head, no matter how real that voice might be, and it didn't help that she was starting to expect Alex's physical presence, because his mental presence was so strong, or that she found herself unaccountably missing it when she realized the reality of their situation once again. A hoarse chuckle suddenly escaped her and Kyle shot her another look, one she barely noticed, another testament to just how much this unexpected bond was affecting her.

Nasedo hadn't seen the irony in using one breath to deride the brutish, unintelligent humans they were surrounded by, and in using another to instruct her to use a human to accomplish a task they hadn't been able to do themselves. But she had, and the fact that said human was now using the very means by which she controlled him, against her, only increased the poignancy. A spark of admiration for the lanky teenager, who though undeniably intelligent, she had never seen as a particularly strong person, flared inside of her as she stared sightlessly at the text book in her lap. Admiration that only intensified her soul deep knowledge that what she was doing was wrong, and that if she were a better, smarter person, she could have found a different path to follow.

_The truth is hiding in your eyes_

_And it's hanging on your tongue_

_Just boiling in my blood_

_Well I will figure this one out on my own_

It was time for a different tactic, Alex decided, as he floated in the limbo that had become his home over the past month. The time for skulking around Tess's mind and getting a feel for who she _really_ was, who she had been in a prior life, and what was really going on, was past. It was time for action, or at least, the limited amount of action he was capable of in his present form. He didn't have access to what his body was doing while it did it, but he had learned to tap into the memories of his body mechanics, which meant that he was as up-to-date on the translation's progress as Tess. Unlike her, he had an unlimited amount of time to study both that information, and the information he'd gleaned from her and Ava's past memories. All of which meant that he knew exactly the sort of pressures she was under, _why_ she was doing what she was doing, and just how dire, but not unsolvable, their current straits were.

The Granilith was no mere religious icon, or even just a ship home; it was the single most advanced piece of technology that the Antarians had available to them, and they hadn't created it, they had stolen it. Although his friends had been informed of the internal war that had led to their deaths, they had no idea that the alliance of five planets had been engaged on the fringes of a much larger interstellar war for centuries, a war between two space empires that dwarfed Antar and its allies in both numbers and advanced technology.

It was one of those two empires that had created the Granilith, and dozens of other devices identical to it, which were both a power source so far beyond fusion technology, much less fission power, that Alex couldn't even begin to comprehend it, _and,_ which allowed for the supposedly impossible possibility of faster than light communication and travel. In short, it was the technological equivalent of the Holy Grail, and Kivar would do _anything_, including invading and/or destroying Earth, to get it back, or at the very least, to prevent anyone else from getting a hold of it.

The Antarians were only at the fringes of that war, a lesser ally of one of the two empires locked in a bitter, titanic struggle, and they were rarely called upon to contribute to the war effort in any significant faction. But that didn't mean they were safe, and at least once before, the war had come calling, leading to death and destruction on three of the five planets, including Antar, before their allies had driven the enemy away. As recompense of sorts, those three planets had been allowed to scavenge the hulks of the enemy ships left behind, and in one of those hulks, Max and Isabel's great grandfather had discovered a piece of hardware that the enemy had captured from their allies, a piece of hardware he should have immediately turned over to them as it was priceless and needed for the war effort. But he hadn't, and that was how the Antarians had come into possession of what they called the Granilith, and how they'd come to hold the title of leader of their own little alliance.

A title now threatened by the fact that Kivar didn't have the Granilith, and that his allies had finally become aware of that loss after the aborted conference in New York. It was also at that conference that Tess had been given the signal to begin the plan that led to her warping him. He knew now that she didn't want to use him, anymore than she wanted to betray her family, however unwelcoming a family they had been. But, she also knew the price to that family, and to this entire planet, if she failed to follow through, and he alone knew her private and intensely furious resignation at the fact that sacrificing their lives, and the life of her yet to be conceived child, was a small price to pay compared to the billions of innocent lives on Earth.

The intimate knowledge he now had of her, intimate knowledge _no_ one else had ever been privy to about the petite and lovely blonde whose beauty and apparently fragility were more than belied by her inner strength and intelligence, had led directly to his own intense admiration and respect for her, for never surrendering the core of herself, or her personal beliefs, in the face of a situation far more hopeless, and helpless, than the one he faced. She didn't have the outside perspective that he had to see a safe path to chart through the dangerous waters she was neck deep in, but he did have that perspective, and it made something deep inside of him swell with pride and joy that he would able to give her hope for the first time in this life – assuming she would give him the chance anyway.

Summoning all of his inner reserve of strength, Alex surged forward against her mind's defenses once again, slipping through them with the ease of familiarity and practice. Once inside, instead of lurking in the background, he spoke directly to her for the first time since she expelled him from his body, his mental voice ringing with all the conviction and determination he could muster. _'You don't have to do this Tess; I know what Kivar has told you, what he plans to do to Earth if you don't, but together _we_ can beat him, if you let me help.'_

_Give me back my point of view_

_Cause I just can't think for you_

_I can hardly hear you say_

_What should I do, well you choose_

Tess had been sitting in math class when Alex's unexpected words had whispered into her mind, and she'd stiffened so suddenly that the back of her skull had almost collided with the nose of the student behind her, who'd been busily trying to both copy answers off her test, and stare down her blouse, neither with much success. Oblivious to his hasty apology, Tess's mouth gaped as Alex took advantage of her shock to covey his plan to her with the speed only thought allowed, a plan that was daring, and dangerous, and damn near impossible to pull off, but if they did… Hope and despair warred within her breast, tears pricking at her eyes at the intensity of both emotions, and the sudden swell of affection and support radiating from the other consciousness attached to her own.

How could he feel anything other than hate or loathing for her? She had already destroyed his life, planned to destroy the lives of others he cared about, and was willing to condemn her own child, once conceived, to whatever fate Kivar had in mind. But he _admired_ her! She couldn't doubt the sincerity of his emotions, the kind of bond they shared made that sort of deception impossible, nor could she doubt his determination to help her fix this, and to back her against his own friends when the truth came out. It was that determination that made her force her despair and doubt down. How could she do anything less than give her all to his plan, when he, who had already lost everything, was willing to give his all in support of her? More than that, she wanted to be _worthy_ of his respect, and her own.

Rising to her feet, she ignored the teacher's startled exclamation as she walked directly towards the door and into the hallway, unaware of the repeated exhortations for her to return as her pace quickened until she was practically sprinting for the exit, and the parking lot that lay beyond. The drive from Roswell to Las Cruces barely registered on her senses, and she was extremely lucky not to have been caught by any highway patrolmen for speeding. She did receive several odd looks as she dashed across the University campus, mostly oblivious to her surroundings as the bulk of her mind was involved in repairing the damage she'd done to the person waiting for her at the end of her mad dash, but she managed to avoid any collisions, and felt the timid glow of uncertain triumph as she opened the door to Alex's dorm room, and found him standing on the other side, blue eyes gleaming with relief, intelligence, and approval.

Getting to this point had been more about reaction and instinct than any real thought, and now that she was here, standing in front of her victim, her _savior_, she didn't know how to respond, her usual intelligence deserting her in favor of fear and shame. Alex could have chosen to sit out his sentence in silence, waiting for her to erase his memories when he was done, and allowed them to blast into space knowing that Earth would be safe. But he hadn't, and that spark of admiration for him had grown into a full blown flame of respect bordering on awe, making her throat tight with the realization of just how _much_ better he deserved than the situation she'd placed him in, and how amazing it was that he'd turned that situation into a thing of hope and possible victory.

_'You deserved better too, Tess,' _Alex said gently, using the intimate mind to mind contact even though he once again had the ability to speak to her in person. _'And if you hadn't sent me here, I never would have been able to come up with this, and I'd never be able to make it work without you.'_

She shook her head in instant denial of his words, her identity as a traitor, no matter how necessary, too deeply ingrained in her to be surrendered that easily, and he closed the distance between them with a single stride, wrapping his arms comfortingly, and protectively, around her slight frame. It made her stiffen, both in surprise and awkwardness (for she was as unused to physical contact as she was to hope), but between the warmth of his lanky body, and the depth and sincerity of the emotions he was swamping her with through their bond, she was outnumbered. She hesitantly slipped her arms around his torso as she relaxed into his embrace, a small part of her, the part that was just a young woman and not an alien or a traitor or a reincarnated Queen, humming with happiness.

_I think I'm trying to save the world from you_

_You've been saving me too_

_We could just stay in and save each other_

Existing in a form that lacked a physical body, with its constraints or advantages, had enabled Alex to focus all his thoughts and emotions on unraveling the tangle he'd been presented with, and on coaxing the girl he was now cradling in his arms into agreeing with his solution. But it had also meant that he was largely oblivious to the implications of the intimacy that had developed between them on an inner level, and what it could mean once he had a physical body again. A physical body that was now _very_ aware of just how beautiful the girl pressed against him was, and aware of how much deeper his feelings for her ran than any girl he'd known before.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your perspective, the very nature of their intimate connection meant that he couldn't hide that awareness from her, nor could he fail to feel her answering awareness as their eyes met and breaths caught, deep emotions and ricocheting physical sensations building between them. Alex didn't know who moved first, nor did he particularly care, all of his logic and rationality failing the moment he felt Tess's lips pressed against his own, warm, pliant and electrifying.

Her skin was so smooth beneath his fingertips as he traced up her spine under her blouse, and her curves so soft as she arched into him, a breathy moan escaping her as their lips parted and tongues tangled. It was a heady and sensuous experience, all the more so after a month of no physical contact (no physical body!) whatsoever, and the strength of her emotions and desire – just as surprising to her as they were to him – nearly overwhelmed him, his knees weakening as she lent him her own strength to keep the two of them standing.

Her hands found his bare skin, sliding beneath his 'The answer is 42' t-shirt, and the delicious sensations created by her nails gently scraping against his skin both increased the haze in his mind and steadied him, his arms automatically tightening around her and lifting her closer, their mouths fused in a primal dance of lust. Kissing Tess Harding had been the last thing on his mind when he plotted the course that had brought them to this point, and falling in love with the young woman who had so ruthlessly and forcibly tied his soul to hers would never have occurred to him on a conscious level. Luckily, he thought with a tiny internal chuckle, a chuckle the blonde in question immediately picked up on and shared with rueful agreement, his subconscious was a hell of a lot cleverer, and it knew exactly what, or rather _who_, it wanted.

The two of them moved as one towards the bed, clothes shedding and fingers exploring while little gasps, giggles, and shuddering moans escaped them, both knowing logically that they didn't have time for such a diversion, and that to any outside eyes it would seem drastically precipitous. But they also knew, on a level so deep it didn't require conscious thought, and that outside eyes would _never_ see, that it had been a foregone conclusion since their bond had clicked so unexpectedly into place a month before. A foregone conclusion they fully intended to enjoy.

_I really miss your hair in my face_

_And the way your innocence tastes_

_And I think you should know this_

_You deserve much better than me_

Tess listened to Alex's steady heartbeat beneath her ear and allowed herself a purely internal purr of contentment. A chuckle rumbled through the bare chest her head was resting on as he heard that silent purr and squeezed her fingers, twined with his own, in agreement. Unexpected and inconceivable were the first adjectives that came to mind when describing their bright and shiny new relationship, but they were far from the only adjectives, and Tess's thoughts were weighing heavily in favor of words such as wonderful, amazing, and without even the faintest hint of embarrassment, orgasmic.

She had been prepared to surrender her virginity to the reincarnated form of her once husband, but while he was undeniably attractive, she hadn't been particularly thrilled about the idea, or the lack of choice involved in her options. Which made what she had just done, what _they_, had just done, all the sweeter. Alex's right arm tightened around her as he followed the direction of her thoughts, and he placed a tender and possessive kiss on top of her head, anger at the situation she'd been in, and gratitude that he'd been able to, hopefully, find her a way out of it, flowing through their bond.

She really didn't deserve to be loved by someone of his integrity and genuine goodness; she knew that, just as she knew that he completely and utterly disagreed with her, and would pounce on her every time she so much as allowed herself to think it. _'Damn straight.' _A teasing but firm voice echoed in her mind. _'And don't you forget it.'_

'_Yes sir!' _Tess replied promptly and with fervor, a small giggle escaping her lips as he gently tickled her side in retaliation. The spurt of good humor provided by the coziness of their position, and the complete satiation her body was still humming with, wasn't enough to overcome her darker fears and doubts however, and those worries were ones he shared. Chewing on one of the golden curls that had strayed too close to her mouth, Tess sighed, squeezing herself even closer to the warm body next to her. _'I suppose we really should get going, if we want to have time to talk to everyone before heading up to the caves.'_

A reluctant surge of agreement answered her and she sighed again, eyes sliding closed as she listened to that reassuring _thump thump _and wished they could stay here forever, isolated from the world. _'How are we going to explain it to them without…?' _She trailed off, unable to consciously form the words to express her subconscious fears.

_'We're going to lie,' _he replied instantly, words tinted with a certain sense of grim cheerfulness. _'They won't understand like I do, they _can't_, not without knowing you like I do, knowing how much you hated what you had to do, and you _did_ have to do it,' _he added, ignoring her flush of doubtful embarrassment. _'And given everything, they won't believe me either. They'll just think you're manipulating me in a subtler fashion.' _She tilted her chin up to meet his regretful but determined blue eyes. _'Maybe someday, we can tell _some_ of them everything, but right now, it's too risky, and we can't take any more chances than necessary.'_

She smiled, both in agreement and gratitude for his unwavering support, and lifted her lips to his, sighing this time with sheer pleasure as they met in a bittersweet kiss. For the first time in the eleven years she'd been walking around this planet, she had hope of being able to save it, her family, and herself, from the fate decided for them before she was 'born.' She owed it all to the young man who in addition to hope, had also given her his love, and the freedom to love him in return.

_Be it the devil or be it him_

_You can count on just one thing_

_When the time is up you'll know_

_Not just one power runs the show_

"Are you sure this is the only way? From what you've told us, they might not accept that we have the right to do this, and take away the only bargaining chip we have, leaving us, and Earth, completely defenseless against Kivar," Liz asked shrewdly, her dark eyes locked on his after a cursory, and still mildly distrustful glance at Tess. Michael, looming behind the couch she was sitting on, grunted his agreement, and Alex hid a smile at the fact that the two of them had become unlikely allies as they represented the middle ground between Max's complete unwillingness to believe anything they said, and Alex and Tess.

Alex nodded, gently squeezing Tess's hand which was resting in his lap, but never taking his gaze away from his best friend's, knowing that once he convinced her, he'd convince Michael, and probably Kyle and the Sheriff as well, leaving Max with only Maria and Isabel for support, neither of whom had offered any sort of opinion, other than benumbed shock.

"I've had a month to go through that translation, and everything Tess remembers of Ava's life, more than even she realized at first, and there is no way for us to be able to use the Granilith in defense of Earth. It is immeasurably powerful by our standards, even by Antarian standards, but we simply don't have the technology available to _use_ that power, and what technology we do have, even if all of Earth united in the effort, would not be enough to defend against Antar on our own. Our only shot is to seek outside help, and there are only two sources we could reach out to, only one of which would have any reason to help us, and who by their own laws, would be _willing_ to protect us."

The brunette nodded slowly, accepting his logic, and he continued, the spark of hope welling inside him and Tess continuing to grow. "The Star League will be thrilled to learn of the Granilith's continued existence, even for them it's a vastly expensive piece of hardware, and we _do_ have the ability to contact them using its power and the orbs. Part of their constitution states that it's their duty to protect planets containing sentient species until those species have the power to defend themselves, specifically against the threat of the Rageth Alliance, but in reality, against any unlawful threat, including one from another of their protectorates, such as Antar."

"What about us?" Michael growled out, gesturing to each of the four hybrids, his voice serious but overlaid with bitter sarcasm as he continued. "Won't it be required to allow Antar to recover 'enemies' of the throne?"

Alex grinned at that, for Tess had broached the same question in that lightning fast exchange of thoughts when he'd first explained his plan to her, and just as then, he had an answer. "Ah, but, due to the Star League's laws on citizenship, cloning and genetic manipulation, the four of you are _not _citizens of Antar, you are rightful citizens of Earth by 'birth', and cannot be held accountable for any acts carried out by your genetic donors."

Liz's eyes widened, as she was the only one in the room beside himself who really understood the implications of those kind of laws, and how much it indicated, when combined with the capabilities of the Granilith, just _how_ advanced the Star League, and by default their enemies the Rageth Alliance, must be. She and Michael grinned back at him simultaneously though (well Michael's was more of a smirk than a real smile) as both of them understood just what his words meant for them in the here and now.

"Let's do it," Liz said firmly, Michael nodding his agreement, even as Max stiffened in shock. "Like you said it _is_ our only option, unless we are willing to sacrifice the four of you," she added, with a pointed glance at her ex, earning a small chuckle from Michael and an even brighter grin from Alex as he stood, pulling Tess along with him.

"Let's go save the world!"

_You've always been a thorn in their side_

_But to me you're a shining light_

_We made our connection_

_A full on chemical reaction_

_Brought on by dark divine intervention_

Tess smiled as she stroked the hair of the young man lying across her lap, his chest rising and falling with the steady breaths of slumber. It was still unbelievable to her that this was real, that she was sitting in a hotel room in Washington DC, waiting to speak to the President of the United States, with the _human_ she loved, and was loved by in return. Alex's plan had worked, had worked perfectly, despite some initial issues with altering the pods programming, and the sudden arrival of Rath, Lonnie, Nicolas, and the few remaining Skins. The foursquare had united as one for the first time, the resonance between them increasing the effectiveness of their powers exponentially, and their enemies on Earth had been wiped out. Just in time for their enemies _not_ on Earth to be blocked by the Star League's astonishingly fast response to their FTL communication.

The League had been exceedingly glad to recover the Granilith, or as they termed it, generator KL-2713, and while the representative they sent had been surprised by the ragtag group of humanoid teenagers responsible for the recovery, he had acquiesced to their requests, and improved upon them considerably. He had arranged for a conference with a few select world powers from Earth to inform them of the existence of alien life, and that so long as they agreed, they would be the newest protectorate of the Star League, and as such entitled to protection from any external threats that exceeded their own technological abilities, as well as a limited access to the education and tools necessary to gradually improve those abilities.

Needless to say, and despite some initial bickering over terms, mostly internal, those powers had been enduringly grateful to accept that offer on behalf of Earth's citizens once the reality of their place in the universe had been impressed on them. They also agreed to the somewhat unorthodox appointment of four teenagers, two not quite human, to Earth's first official Extraterrestrial Affairs Bureau, an international organization that was currently quite small, and most concerned with hammering out the details of the treaty, as well as implementing those details, which included the not so small matter of informing the rest of the planet of what had happened.

But all of that hassle, and the crises it would inevitably spawn, were yet to come, and at the moment, those four teenagers, and their parental figures (those who had them), had been invited to the White House to meet the President and America's other personnel contributions to the EAB, all of whom were deeply curious about these mysterious adolescents who had managed such a coup. Tess chuckled softly as she remembered the looks of confusion and astonishment on the faces of the Parkers and the Whitmans when the invitation had been delivered, by the Vice President himself, accompanied by a fleet of secret service personnel, two of whom now stood outside the hotel room door, one each for her and Alex's protection. One of those agents knocked on the door and then opened it, meeting her gaze with professional detachment. "Miss Parker and Mr. Guerin are here to see you ma'am."

"Send them in please; thank you," Tess replied calmly, smothering another chuckle at being called ma'am, and at the disgruntled scowl on Michael's face as he entered the room on Liz's heels. He had been the least pleased of the four of them by the notion of becoming an official employee of the government, and even less pleased by the fact that he was now being followed around and protected by one of the very men in suits he had spent his whole life fearing. The door closed behind them and Liz reached back, seemingly instinctively, and gently squeezed his arm, chasing the scowl from his face as a more resigned expression replaced it, sending a spike of curiosity through Tess as she once again wondered just _how_ close the two of them had become in the past few weeks.

She felt Alex's answering curiosity, and amusement, as he rose to wakefulness and theatrically yawned, blinking comically at his best friend and the hulking young man behind her. "Why hello there Miss Parker and Mr. Guerin, you seem to be missing some shadows." Liz joined Tess in soft laughter, but Michael glared until Liz tugged him down onto the couch adjacent to the one Tess and Alex were reclining on and patted his hand consolingly.

"I don't mind the shadows so much, as the coaches," she commented dryly, dark eyes flickering with weary amusement, and Tess nodded emphatically at her, both boys grimacing in agreement. In addition to their protection detail, they'd also been assigned a few very enthusiastic young men and women, whose job it was to coach them on the niceties of politics, both domestic and foreign, including how to dress, how to act, what to say, who to say it to, etc., and Michael wasn't the only one growing increasingly frustrated with their hovering.

"The price we pay for saving the world, I suppose," her boyfriend said philosophically, a smug grin replacing his frown, and Tess gently smacked his forehead while Liz rolled her eyes and Michael chuckled. None of them could dispute the words though, and for just a moment, all four of them smiled in accord as they took a moment to appreciate just how amazing what they'd accomplished was.

_'I love you, Alex Whitman, and I will never be able to repay you for giving me a reason to help you save the world,' _Tess said silently, leaning down and brushing an apologetic kiss against the faint red mark on his forehead.

Alex sat up abruptly and pulled her into his arms, holding her gaze steadily. _'I helped _you_ save the world, Tess Harding, and I will never be able to repay you for letting me love you, and for loving me in return.'_ The intensity and sincerity of his words brought tears to her eyes and the kiss they shared as their lips met was even more gratifying than the first one they'd ever shared, for their hope then hadn't been in vain, and no matter who was ultimately responsible, their world _was _safe.

"Saps," Michael muttered disgustedly, then winced as Liz glared him into silence, her own eyes shimmering faintly as she watched her best friend and the girl he loved, utterly grateful that Tess had trusted him enough to get them all to this point, and that he was so clearly happy. Maybe she'd get him a plaque, 'Alex Whitman, World Savior'; it had a nice ring to it.

_You are a force, you are a constant source_

_Yeah you are a shining light_

_Incandescent in the darkest night_


End file.
